Assessing the Social Impact of Development Projects

This book shows how social impact assessment (SIA), which emerged barely five decades ago, as a way to anticipate and manage potentially negative social impacts of building dams, power stations, urban infrastructure, highways, industries, mining and other development projects, is now widely in use as a planning tool, especially in developed countries. Although SIA has still not gained much acceptance among development planners in Asia, the situation is gradually changing. In India, SIA initially mandated as a policy guideline in 2007 is now a legal requirement. SIA in China has also recently become obligatory for certain types of development projects. Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are other Asian countries that provide examples from a variety of externally funded projects illustrating the use of social impact analysis in project planning to improve development outcomes. With contributions from an array of leading experts, this book is a valuable resource on SIA, indispensable for policymakers, planners, and practitioners in government, international development agencies, private-sector industry, private banks, consultants, teachers, researchers and students of social sciences and development studies, also NGOs everywhere, not in Asia alone.

“The aims of this book include discussing the complex relationships among physical landscapes, natural resources, and their modification by human land use in various Asian environments. …   This publication is a useful resource for governments, multilateral development agencies, policymakers, development planners, practitioners, researchers, trainers, environmentalists, social scientists, consultants, academic activists and others who are increasingly beginning to see SIA as a tool for planning better development.” (Lina María Rosales, E&U Environment & Urbanization, environmentandurbanization.org, January, 2016)

Hari Mohan Mathur is Visiting Professor, Council for Social Development, New Delhi. Earlier, as a member of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), he has held senior positions in the Government of India, as well as in the State of Rajasthan, including as Chief Secretary to the Government of Rajasthan. In addition, Dr Mathur has been Vice-Chancellor of the University of Rajasthan. He has also worked for the United Nations, World Bank and ADB as staff member and consultant on Development Management and Involuntary Resettlement issues. He has served as Development Administration Specialist at the UN Asian and Pacific Development Centre, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and was United Nations Adviser to the Government of Uganda in Kampala. In addition, Dr Mathur has been staff consultant to several other UN organizations, including World Bank, ADB, FAO, UNDP, UNDTCD, UNESCAP, and UNESCO.